Ceri Weber
@ceriweber.bsky.social
postdoc studying mammal tails @ucsdcooperlab • PhD Capel Lab 🐢• my name sounds like 'Keri'
hint: wild-type specimens from the same species at the same age.
November 14, 2025 at 10:25 PM
hint: wild-type specimens from the same species at the same age.
Greedy little chondrocytes
November 4, 2025 at 7:08 PM
Greedy little chondrocytes
Of course now I wonder *how* mid-tail vertebral growth is amplified in A. auratus...
November 4, 2025 at 6:08 PM
Of course now I wonder *how* mid-tail vertebral growth is amplified in A. auratus...
Just checked my data and Ramp2 is also disproportionately differentially expressed in the longest jerboa vertebra. Tail evo devo is so fucking cool!!!! www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Cellular and genetic mechanisms that shape the development and evolution of tail vertebral proportion in mice and jerboas - Nature Communications
Vertebra lengths differ from the neck to the tail tip and differ between species, evidenced by extreme differences in mouse and jerboa tails. Here, Weber and colleagues identify cellular mechanisms an...
www.nature.com
November 4, 2025 at 6:04 PM
Just checked my data and Ramp2 is also disproportionately differentially expressed in the longest jerboa vertebra. Tail evo devo is so fucking cool!!!! www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Hey maybe jerboas are also big and dangerous sons of bitches!
October 10, 2025 at 7:06 PM
Hey maybe jerboas are also big and dangerous sons of bitches!
Thank you to all the authors and network of colleagues and mentors who have helped make this work happen. I can't wait to keep digging into vertebra development, axial skeletal diversity, and tail biology!!
October 10, 2025 at 6:46 PM
Thank you to all the authors and network of colleagues and mentors who have helped make this work happen. I can't wait to keep digging into vertebra development, axial skeletal diversity, and tail biology!!
Here, we use the jerboa and mouse to understand the temporal growth dynamics that establish adult vertebral proportion, the cellular drivers of differential growth, and candidate genetic mechanisms that determine and diversify vertebral proportion.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Cellular and genetic mechanisms that shape the development and evolution of tail vertebral proportion in mice and jerboas - Nature Communications
Vertebra lengths differ from the neck to the tail tip and differ between species, evidenced by extreme differences in mouse and jerboa tails. Here, Weber and colleagues identify cellular mechanisms and candidate genes that shape vertebral proportion.
www.nature.com
October 10, 2025 at 6:46 PM
Here, we use the jerboa and mouse to understand the temporal growth dynamics that establish adult vertebral proportion, the cellular drivers of differential growth, and candidate genetic mechanisms that determine and diversify vertebral proportion.
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
We find that their long tails are acquired by far greater elongation of individual vertebral elements in the mid-tail region. This pattern, called a 'crescendo-decrescendo' of tail vertebral lengths, likely enhances their ability to inertially maneuver. See: pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...
October 10, 2025 at 6:46 PM
We find that their long tails are acquired by far greater elongation of individual vertebral elements in the mid-tail region. This pattern, called a 'crescendo-decrescendo' of tail vertebral lengths, likely enhances their ability to inertially maneuver. See: pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC...
This project started during my postdoc interview when I asked @ucsdcooperlab.bsky.social "jerboa tails seem longer. Have you looked into that?". It turns out the jerboa tail is approximately 1.5x longer than the mouse, normalized to body length, but with 3-4 *fewer* vertebrae than in mice.
October 10, 2025 at 6:46 PM
This project started during my postdoc interview when I asked @ucsdcooperlab.bsky.social "jerboa tails seem longer. Have you looked into that?". It turns out the jerboa tail is approximately 1.5x longer than the mouse, normalized to body length, but with 3-4 *fewer* vertebrae than in mice.
I love degus!! They have sweet little medium tails, and a few features that I'd love to study. That 90 day gestation is LONG but it looks like they're born precocial so I may not always need to wait 3 whole months...
October 3, 2025 at 10:34 PM
I love degus!! They have sweet little medium tails, and a few features that I'd love to study. That 90 day gestation is LONG but it looks like they're born precocial so I may not always need to wait 3 whole months...
I'd love to study tree squirrel tails but that particular side quest has been benched for the time being.
October 3, 2025 at 10:24 PM
I'd love to study tree squirrel tails but that particular side quest has been benched for the time being.
By short(er) I mean anywhere from shorter than the length of the body (nose-anus) to a stubby little guinea pig tail. I'm already looking at mouse tails (1x its body length) and jerboa tails (1.5x body length).
October 3, 2025 at 10:24 PM
By short(er) I mean anywhere from shorter than the length of the body (nose-anus) to a stubby little guinea pig tail. I'm already looking at mouse tails (1x its body length) and jerboa tails (1.5x body length).